A Fresh Start
by Like Stars in the Sky
Summary: Kagome and Souta move to Ikebukuro together, Souta for Raira Academy, and Kagome for the excitement she lost with her feudal era adventures. Little did she know, Kagome would find the excitement she craved. Izaya/ Kagome/ Shizuo DISCONTINUED- Rewrite In Progress
1. Prologue

**Prologue: A New Beginning**

_I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love. –Daphne Rae_

Kagome Higurashi may have grown up a normal girl, but she wasn't born that way. She was the reincarnation of a powerful priestess of the feudal era, named Kikyo. When Kikyo died, the Shikon no Tama in her possession was brought with her soul to be reborn in Kagome, five hundred years in the future. Kagome lived through the first fifteen years of her life not knowing of the power she held inside her very soul. That power was revealed to her on her fifteenth birthday, when she was attacked by a reborn centipede demon and dragged five hundred years into a past that was far more dangerous than anything she'd ever encountered before. From that day forward, Kagome's life was forever changed. Never again would she be able to enjoy a normal, boring life. Never again would she be a normal girl.

But, that was okay with her. She had an important duty, a job to do. It was Kagome who broke the Shikon, in her effort to retrieve it from a crow demon. It was Kagome who had to collect all of the shards, with only the half demon known as Inuyasha to help her. It started out rough for the young priestess, but she persevered and things worked out in the end. Throughout their journey, Kagome and Inuyasha made many friends. Slowly but surely, their small group of two grew into more. The first that joined them was Shippo, a young fox demon who had recently lost his parents. He was a sweet, caring child, but he was often at odds with Inuyasha. The next person to join their rag-tag group was a cursed monk named Miroku. He was a complete pervert, which led Kagome to believe his hand was cursed in more ways than one. Things got a lot more interesting when their last two members joined in. Sango and Kirara were wonderful fighters, and Kagome really enjoyed having another female around to talk to. Not to mention the drama that came with the slayer's odd relationship with Miroku the monk. The two of them were perfect for each other, if only Miroku would cut back on the groping. Kagome loved all her friends deeply, but Inuyasha, she loved most of all. Throughout their journey, her relationship with the temperamental half demon grew, and Kagome eventually fell in love with him.

Kagome was the happiest she could ever be when they finally defeated Naraku. In her eyes, Sango and Miroku finally had their chance to get married and have children together. Everyone seemed happier with Naraku gone, and Kagome hoped she finally had her chance at love with Inuyasha. So, when the bone-eater's well separated Kagome from Inuyasha forever, she was completely devastated. She sunk into a depression that never seemed to end. It was weeks, months even before she was able to move on, before the knowledge that her friends were not dead, only separated from her by time, sunk in. She knew, deep inside, that her feudal era friends wouldn't want her to waste her life mourning them when they had never died.

So, Kagome did her best to move on and find happiness in the normal life that had been returned to her. And, yet, she could not. She'd survived in a world of demons and danger for far too long, and normality was no longer hers to have. She craved excitement and adventure, but Kagome knew that to go out looking for it would be like placing a demonic target upon her and the jewel she still carried and protected. So, the young priestess did the only thing she knew to do. She became absorbed in her studies, though she never did go to college. She took gymnastics in high school, and when that wasn't enough, she added a martial arts class at a local dojo.

It was never enough to satiate Kagome's love of adventure. Which was why, at twenty-two, Kagome decided it was time to move out of the family shrine. Using the old college fund she didn't need or use, Kagome settled into an apartment in Ikebukuro with her younger brother Souta, who'd been accepted into Raira Academy. It was the start of a new, hopefully more exciting, life for Kagome, and Souta got to come along for the ride.

**End Prologue**

So, let me know how you like the new prologue. Is it better or worse than the previous prologue? Constructive criticism is alright, but please, no flames! Flames don't help the authors at all! Reviews are the only payment us fanfiction authors will ever get from our work, so please don't be shy!


	2. Chapter the First

**Chapter the First: New In Town**

_A man reserves his true and deepest love not for the species of woman in whose company he finds himself electrified and enkindled, but for that one in whose company he may feel tenderly drowsy. –George Jean Nathan_

Moving into her new apartment, Kagome realized, was harder than she thought it would be. She had Souta to help her, but even then, Kagome still had a lot that she'd needed to do. Because she lived in her family shrine her whole life, Kagome had been forced to buy just about everything for her new apartment, including furniture. Then, she'd needed to get it all there and unpack everything. It took two days to get everything done, and by the time she'd even started on the spiritual security system, Kagome was nearly exhausted.

"There!" Kagome exclaimed with a sigh of relief. "All done!"

"So, what do these things do?" Souta asked, curiously inspecting the paper ofudas Kagome had placed over every door and window in their new apartment.

"They put up a barrier that keeps out anyone with ill intentions," Kagome said, swiping the back of her hand over her forehead. "It should keep out thieves, at least."

Souta blinked, glancing away from Kagome to look back over at the wards. "Isn't that why the old lady who runs this place gave us a discount?" he asked, reaching out to touch the ofuda in curiosity. "Because our apartment is easier to break into than most of the others?"

Before his finger could touch the spiritually-enforced, painted slip of paper, Kagome's hand reached out to slap his own away. "Don't touch that. I'd like to see a thief try to get in here, now that my barrier is up."

"Are you sure it'll work, Sis?" Souta asked, lightly rubbing the hand she'd slapped away with his other one. "And why can't I touch it?"

Kagome rolled her eyes and turned to look at Souta. "Of course it'll work, Souta. It's attuned to my energy, so if anyone besides me touches these wards, they'll get shocked. If you want that, then go ahead and touch it for all I care, but don't come complaining to me after."

Souta's eyes widened and his mouth fell open. "Shocked!" he exclaimed loudly. "You mean, like, electrocuted?"

Kagome nodded. "It's just a small shock, not enough to kill anyone."

Souta looked from Kagome to the ofuda and back nervously. "If you say so," he said, stepping away from the ofuda-enhanced hallway window. He took another look at Kagome, who was looking out the window she'd just thief-proofed, and then glanced down the hallway. "I'm hungry," Souta murmured aloud to himself, turning away from Kagome to walk off into the kitchen.

"I don't have any food, yet!" Kagome called after him, moving away from the window to follow him down the hallway.

He came back around the kitchen doorway with a disappointed look on his face. "Really?" he asked, and Kagome nodded in response. "Well, then, can we go out to get something?"

Kagome sighed, nodding again. "I guess so," she said, walking past Souta to pull open the front door. "Come on," she called, glancing back at him briefly over her shoulder as she stepped out into the hallway.

Souta grinned, immediately moving after her through the doorway. "Thanks, Sis!" he exclaimed, moving ahead of her to push the button beside the elevator almost directly across from their door.

Locking the door behind them, Kagome moved over to stand beside Souta in front of the elevator. "It's no problem, Squirt," Kagome told him, smiling down at him as she listened to the telltale signs and sounds of the elevator rising to their floor.

Just a moment later, Kagome heard a 'ding' just as the elevator doors slid open in front of them. It was gratefully empty, Kagome noted as she stepped inside, with Souta popping in just a step behind her. Reaching over, Kagome pushed the button for the ground floor and stood back to wait on their arrival. Pulling out her cell phone (which Souta had totally conned her into buying), Kagome took a moment to log onto the online chatroom she'd been frequenting recently. As she typed away, Kagome kept one eye and ear open so she'd know when they arrived on the ground floor of their building. Kagome was grateful when she noticed that Setton was the only one online at the moment. It gave her the perfect chance to ask her question without Kanra around to get on her nerves or blow things out of proportion. She liked it better this way.

"Hey, are you talking to your online friends?" Souta questioned, looking over at her to notice Kagome's cell phone. "What are you talking about?" he asked, just as the elevator doors opened with a fresh new ding.

"Ah, I just asked about the dangerous stuff in Ikebukuro, you know, what to stay away from, who to avoid. Stuff like that." Kagome shrugged nonchalantly, walking out of the freshly opened elevator to enter the well-decorated lobby. It was decorated in neutral colors, different shades of brown mostly, but there was a hint of red in the carpeting and the furniture, and just a bit of black and white in the desk area.

"Really?" Souta asked, walking just a step behind Kagome as the older female headed straight for the large glass doors at the front of the building. "Because you're such a danger magnet? So, what'd they say?"

Stopping just outside the front of their apartment building, Kagome glanced down at the screen from where she'd been watching Souta and the path she was walking. "Well, I'm being told to avoid the Yakuza and the color gangs, of course. And there's something about a Black Rider on here too, whatever that is."

"Anything else?" Souta asked curiously, following behind Kagome as she resumed weaving in and out of the crowds on the sidewalk.

Kagome stopped on the sidewalk again a moment later, and Souta stopped beside her, his eyes on her face. Concentration shone in Kagome's eyes as she slowly, carefully read over the message clearly staring her in the face from the screen of her phone. She looked up at Souta, over the rim of the sleek black device in her hand, a moment later.

"It says to avoid pissing off a guy named Shizuo Heiwajima at all costs. Apparently, he's really strong, and he's got a short temper, so people tend to get hurt a lot around him."

Kagome returned her gaze to her phone, typing up a reply to send back to Setton, just as Souta opened his mouth to ask her another question. "So, how are you supposed to do that when you don't even know what the guy looks like?"

"That's what I just asked her," Kagome told him, watching her phone as, a moment later, another reply flashed onto the screen. "Ah, here's the reply now!" Kagome grinned up at Souta.

"Well, don't hold out on me!" Souta exclaimed, coming over to lean over her shoulder in curiosity so he could see the screen himself. "What does it say?"

"She says that he's pretty easy to spot. He's tall and blond, and he wears a bartender outfit, even though he's not a bartender. Also, if I ever see any large, heavy objects (like vending machines) go flying into the air, it's probably him."

Souta pulled away from Kagome, giving her back her personal space as he snorted with laughter. "Good luck avoiding him, then Sis!"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Kagome all but yelled at Souta as she glared over at his form, retreating into the crowd of people still moving around them.

"Just face it, Sis!" Souta told her, grinning as Kagome carved a path in the crowd to step back over to walk beside him. "You're a total magnet for danger! Every time something dangerous is in the area, you get caught up right in the middle of it!"

"I am not!" Kagome exclaimed angrily, clutching her phone tightly in her clenched hand. "Take that back!"

"But, it's completely true!" Souta said, laughing with one hand held lightly over his stomach. "No way!"

Kagome glanced at her phone to check the time, and distract her from Souta's teasing for a moment, but then she noticed something. "Hey, there's more to Setton's message!"

Kagome held the phone closer to her face as she read what Setton was telling her now, a part of the message she'd somehow missed just a moment or so before.

"Ooh, what now?" Souta asked eagerly, coming over to try and read over Kagome's shoulder again. Surprisingly enough, both teens were still walking down the sidewalk, easily falling into the rhythm of the Ikebukuro streets.

Holding her phone out of Souta's reach, Kagome read the message. "Apparently, this Shizuo guy's not the only one I need to avoid. There's someone else, named Izaya Orihara."

"That's a weird name," Souta responded, his hands clasped behind his back as he matched Kagome's pace step-for-step. "So, what else?"

"According to Setton, I need to avoid Izaya completely, instead of just trying not to piss him off. Apparently, he's an information broker and he's really dangerous. It wouldn't be a good idea to get involved with him." Kagome looked over at Souta with a serious look on her face.

"Right," Souta said, suddenly serious as they rounded a corner, moving with the multitude of people wandering through Ikebukuro with a purpose and a destination. "So, how are you going to do it? You being a danger magnet and all, you're bound to meet up with both of these guys eventually."

Souta said it so nonchalantly that Kagome almost didn't recognize the jab for what it was, so intent was she at that moment on not running into anyone. "Hey! Take that back! I am not a danger magnet!"

Souta smirked, stepping ahead, staying just out of her reach. "I give it one week before you totally ram right into both of those guys and get yourself caught in yet another dangerous situation!"

Kagome turned her head to look at Souta, opening her mouth to deny his accusation, but she wasn't looking where she was going and she bumped into someone. The force of the collision sent Kagome sprawling backward to land roughly on the ground, but luckily enough, her cell phone suffered no damage from the impact.

"Hey, Sis, are you o…kay," Souta's voice floated over to her from somewhere nearby, but he carried off a bit towards the end of his sentence, making it difficult for Kagome to hear it properly.

"Yeah, I'm fine Squirt," Kagome responded after a moment, pulling herself to her feet and using her hands to dust herself off, after putting her cell phone away into her pocket, of course.

Looking up, Kagome opened her mouth to apologize to the person she'd run into, but the words froze in her throat when she caught sight of the male standing before her. He was tall, had blond hair, and was wearing a bartender outfit, just like the description she'd been given not fifteen minutes ago. It took only a moment for Kagome to realize that this was the Shizuo Heiwajima she'd been warned against pissing off.

'_The best thing to do right now would be to apologize for running into him and be on my way,'_ Kagome thought to herself warily, biting her lip almost nervously. _'I don't know what kind of things set him off and he already looks like he's in a bad mood. Considering I was warned against pissing him off, I'd say things get pretty bad when he loses his temper, so I wouldn't want that to happen. At least not with Souta here, anyway.'_

"Ah, I'm sorry," Kagome told him, releasing her bottom lip and smiling softly in an effort to calm him down from his already bad-looking mood. "I wasn't looking where I was going. I didn't mean to run into you like that."

Shizuo didn't say anything, but Kagome could tell by the twitch of his eyebrow that he was still irritated. He was staring straight at her, but not at her at the same time, and the intensity of the slight glare in his eyes brought a blush to Kagome's face. Suddenly even more nervous than before, Kagome looked away from him, twiddling her fingers together in slight anticipation as she decided that the ground was far more interesting. Kagome was interrupted from her thoughts of anxiety by a tugging on her coat sleeve. Grateful for the interruption, Kagome looked down to her right at where the tugging came from. Blinking curiously at her younger brother, Kagome turned her face to stare at his uneasy one.

"What is it Souta?" Kagome turned to face him fully, and she noticed out of the corner of her eyes the other two males look over at him as well.

"Can we go get something to eat now, Sis?" he asked, blushing embarrassedly and Kagome could see the slightly pleading look in his eyes. "I'm still hungry." Right then, Souta's stomach rumbled loudly, agreeing with what he'd just said to her.

Kagome laughed at that in a slightly teasing manner, but she knew why he'd chosen just then to mention the food they'd left the apartment to get. He was remembering the warning they were given, and Kagome was sure he was just trying to get out of the area. Sometimes, Souta really was just a scaredy cat.

"Sure, Souta! I'm kinda hungry too, anyway!" Kagome told him, giving him a soft smile that told him she knew what his motives were, a smile that she reserved specifically for close friends and family. Turning to face Shizuo and the other guy, Kagome readjusted her smile to a kind, apologetic one. "I'm sorry again for running into you like that. I gotta run now, but I hope we meet again someday!"

Grabbing onto Souta's hand, Kagome waved to Shizuo and his friend, ignoring the somewhat shocked look on their faces as she walked down the sidewalk with Souta in tow. A few minutes later saw the siblings in front of a place called Russia Sushi, standing in front of a tall black Russian guy handing out flyers. "Long time no see!" He said with a thick Russian accent, smiling kindly, even though Kagome knew she'd never seen him before in her life. "You eat sushi? Sushi good!"

"What do you think, Souta?" Kagome asked, turning to look at Souta beside her. "Think this is a good place to eat?" She asked him, holding the flyer she'd just been given so that Souta could also see it.

"Yeah! Let's go inside!" He grinned excitedly, happy to be away from Shizuo, and ran inside ahead of Kagome.

"Thank you!" Kagome said, smiling in a kind, polite way up at the tall man and he returned her smile with a large grin of his own.

Kagome went inside the restaurant, slower than Souta's suddenly over-energetic form, and sat across from him at the table he'd chosen. Soon enough, they'd placed their orders and had their sushi sitting right in front of them at the table. Kagome took a few bites, eating slowly and savoring the taste, which she thought was pretty delicious.

"This is good!" Souta exclaimed, eating faster, and Kagome grinned.

"Mmhm," Kagome responded, taking another bite. After she swallowed, Kagome spoke again. "So, what do you think about Shizuo Heiwajima now that you've met him? Not as bad as you thought, huh?"

Souta looked up at her from over his food with a frightfully serious look on his face. "He's scary, Sis! I was so afraid back there that something bad was going to happen."

Kagome smiled, noticing the fearsome look in his eyes as he continued to eat his sushi. "He didn't do anything though, Squirt," she told him, eating more of her own sushi (though she did make sure not to talk with her mouth full). "If you're scared of him now, I can't wait to see how scared you get when he actually does lose his temper."

"I wasn't scared for me!" Souta exclaimed, jabbing his chopsticks into a piece of sushi as he blushed embarrassedly, looking away from Kagome's curiously prying eyes. "I was scared for you!"

A look of dawning comprehension appeared on Kagome's face and she smiled at Souta again. "Oh, I get it," she said, setting her chopsticks down beside her dish. "You were afraid something bad would happen and I would get hurt, weren't you?"

Souta nodded, taking another bite of sushi. Standing up, Kagome moved over to sit beside Souta, bringing her food with her as she placed an arm around his shoulders. "It's alright, Squirt," Kagome told him, rubbing his back and shoulders a bit to comfort him. "I can take care of myself. You know that. I've faced far scarier things than a human with a bad temper."

"Yeah," Souta agreed, nodding as he looked over at her. "You know something?" he asked aloud, half to Kagome and half to himself, causing Kagome to tilt her head slightly in wary curiosity. "I was right, though, in a way." Here, he grinned over at her, obviously in a better mood. "I gave it a week before you ran into those people you were warned about, but it didn't even take a day and you've already met one of them! I was so right about you being a danger magnet!"

Souta was back to teasing her now, and Kagome could see by the amused look on his face that he was more happily energetic than he had been when they were talking about Shizuo. Grinning, Kagome joined in on the teasing, glad the serious talk was over with for the moment.

"This coming from the world's number one scaredy cat!" Kagome shot back at him, though she couldn't help the grin that spread widely upon her face.

A few minutes (and several teasing comments from the both of them) later, Kagome and Souta were back to walking along the streets of Ikebukuro, with full stomachs and considerably lighter spirits.

"So, what are we gonna do now, Sis?" Souta asked, walking along beside her.

"Hmm," Kagome tapped her chin thoughtfully for a moment, and then shrugged. "I don't know. We'll probably head home soon, though."

"But it's only six o'clock, Sis!" Souta complained, groaning slightly at the idea of going home that early. "Do we really have to go home so soon?"

"Maybe so, Squirt," Kagome told him, glancing over in his direction. "Don't forget, we still have things to do tomorrow, and I'd rather get it done as soon as possible. I've still got to find a job somewhere, too. We can't forget about that."

Although he was still pouting about it, Souta nodded in agreement with what Kagome said. "Yeah, I know."

At that moment, Kagome spotted a young teenaged girl walking along ahead of them. The strange thing about it was that she was following behind an older dark-haired man with glasses, and Kagome doubted the two of them were related. Making a split decision because her senses were telling her something was wrong about this, Kagome took out the key to their apartment and handed it to Souta, who gave her a confused look.

"You know how to get home from here, don't you Squirt?" she asked, following behind the two at a safe enough distance, with Souta walking beside her. When he nodded, Kagome continued. "Okay, then. I want you to head on in that direction on your own, and be careful, too. I've got something to take care of before I head home too. Just leave that one window by the fire escape unlocked for me, okay Squirt?"

"What do you have to do, Sis, that's so important you have to do it right now?" He asked curiously with a slightly worried look in his brown eyes, walking beside her as she weaved her way through the crowds.

"That's not important, at the moment," she told him, glancing in his direction briefly before swinging her azure gaze back on the girl. "I'll tell you about it later, just head on home and be careful, okay."

He nodded. "Alright, you be careful too, Sis." With that, Souta turned around and started walking in the opposite direction, heading back the way they came to get this far.

Kagome sprinted ahead, keeping the girl and her odd companion in sight as they walked along through the streets. She followed them at a slight distance until they came to a darker area with no other people, just a suspicious looking van parked a bit off to the side. Kagome watched from behind the corner as the back of the van opened up to reveal another man, and as the darker-haired man looked around to make sure the coast was clear, Kagome stepped back a bit so that he didn't see her. As the two of them jumped the teen girl, Kagome's eyes widened and she rushed out of her hiding spot around the corner to help the girl.

"Hey you!" she exclaimed loudly, gaining the attention of the two men, who looked up from the already unconscious girl. She could tell just by looking as she ran towards them that they had been about to take off and that made her run faster as she balled up her hand into a fist. "Let that girl go!"

As she reached the two who had already jumped out of the van, Kagome pulled back her fist and aimed a punch, feeling it connect right at the darker-haired man's jaw. She didn't stop there, though, twisting her body around to land a kick to the gut on the one with light brown hair. Surprisingly enough, he didn't fall to the ground, managing to stay on his feet, though the 'oomph' of air he let out was proof enough that she'd done some damage. So, Kagome pulled back her fist and let it fly right into his left eye, and he finally fell to the ground with a grunt of pain.

"You bitch!" The darker-haired one was getting up from where he landed on the ground at her punch, and Kagome became so focused on him that she didn't notice as the driver side door opened up.

He pulled a taser out of his pocket, and Kagome noticed it just in time to flip backwards out of its path when he shot forward with it. She was shocked, though, when a thick pair of arms circled from behind her and under her arms to hook on her shoulders and hold her in place.

"What the-Let me go you bastard!" Kagome yelled, struggling against the man who held her.

"Hurry up man!" He told the man with glasses standing in front of her, and he came closer to her with something blue in his hand, the taser no longer there. "I can't hold her for long! This chick's kinda tough!"

When Kagome realized what the blue thing was, her eyes widened and she struggled harder. "Oh, hell no!" she exclaimed, right as it was placed over her mouth and nose.

As her vision faded slowly to black, Kagome kicked out her leg one more time in a last ditch effort to deal more damage and save herself, as well as the other girl. Right before she passed out, Kagome felt a surge of triumph at the cry of pain she heard from in front of her.

"Damn, that's one tough chick!" said the fat one, panting with his hands on his knees as he stared at the unconscious girl on the ground. "What do you wanna do with her?"

The shorter one with light brown hair stood up, clutching his eye. "Let's put her in the back with the teen chick! Maybe we can get a bonus for an extra girl!"

"That or later we can have some fun with her," said Glasses man, standing up unsteadily while clutching his manhood. "After what she did to us, the bitch deserves it!"

"Yeah." Together, the three of them put her in the back beside the girl she'd been trying to help, and after climbing in themselves, the van finally took off into the street.

A little ways away, a dark-haired male wearing a black fur-trimmed coat stepped out of hiding, walking forward to where the van had been previously as he took out his phone. Smirking, he pushed a few buttons and held it against his ear. "What an interesting development."

**Chapter End**


	3. Chapter the Second

**New Review Reply to 'This is obviously': **Thanks. My stories tend to start out a bit slow and in the 'needs a bit of work' area, and then get better the further in I get. I know you were just saying what you thought/ felt, and I don't blame you for that. Sometimes, I just feel the need to defend my story, even though I know it probably does need a bit more work. I'm also glad you got it that the beginning really was just an introductory-type thing. It wasn't meant to be a real chapter, honestly. I just have it there as a prologue to introduce the readers to where the story is at this point. As in: Kagome's feudal journey and how she got to where she is now. Eventually, I'll change that into actual chapters that show, instead of just telling, how it all happened. I was just excited about starting to actually write the story that I wanted to let everyone know where it was starting out without taking too much time on that section. I'll go back and fix that later, and probably leave all that in one 'chapter/prologue' thing, the way it is now. Except, a lot longer.

I understand the no account thing. It's just, I could tell by reading your review that you were familiar with the site, but I wasn't sure exactly how deep into it you were. Like, if you had an account and you just didn't want to log in to review, or if you didn't have one and that's why. But, I admit that I didn't spend too much time thinking about that part, either. About the detail thing, I used to put so much detail into the stories I wrote (some of them were never posted and I no longer have them due to a flash drive malfunction) that I thought it was too much. Like, the detail and information was so much, that everything else seemed lacking in comparison. So, I started cutting back a bit, but I guess I cut back a little too much. I'll try to add in a bit more detail in the future, if that helps. I don't think I need a beta for detail, either, though. I'm great with detail when I want to be, but I guess I'm still working on putting the right amount of it in my stories. I do have one question, though. Even with the stuff that (I admit) does need editing, do you personally think the story has a flow of any kind to it? I'm actually not that fond of some of my other stories. Quite a few of them were created back when I was first starting to get into writing, and they're not so great. I'm either going to give them away, or delete them. I just hate to delete any of my stories, though, because of people who may have liked them. My other 'recent' stories are in the process of being outlined, and that's why I haven't updated as recently as I would have liked. I actually read every review, and I try to respond to each of them personally. Like, I hate just posting review responses on the next chapter. With anonymous reviews, I do that if there's something I want to say.

Ah, but I'm glad everything is all cleared up, now. I'm glad you like the story, though, even with the obvious faults. It's hard for me, as a writer, to catch my own mistakes, at least until someone else points them out. Usually, I eventually find them, and edit accordingly. But, thanks. ^^_^^

**Review Reply to 'Luna Yue': **Thanks for reviewing. It's starting just a bit slow, but it picks up the further in you get, I think. I'm planning out Souta's part now. My stories always start out like this, but I usually edit it a bunch as I write, so it'll be better soon. I change things, a lot, too, but I try not to change anything major. ^^_^^

**Review Reply to 'Silvermoon of Forestclan': **Thanks! I'll be going through a lot of editing on it, soon, too. So, be prepared for some minor changes in the first few chapters in the near future. (Unless it's already happened.) Nothing too major will be changing, though. ^^_^^

Chapter the Second: Escaping

_ Absence diminishes mediocre passions and increases great ones, as the wind extinguishes candles and fans fires. –Francois de La Rochefoucauld_

**Last Time: **

A little ways away, a dark-haired male wearing a black fur-trimmed coat stepped out of hiding, walking forward to where the van had been previously as he took out his phone. Smirking, he pushed a few buttons and held it against his ear. "What an interesting development."

**This Time:**

Kagome opened her eyes blearily, remembering almost immediately what had happened. Glancing around, Kagome noticed that the back of the van was open, and all three of the guys who'd kidnapped both the girl and herself were smoking, having not yet noticed Kagome was awake. Realizing she was tied up with something, Kagome quietly tested the strength of her bindings by pulling on them. It was then that she realized just what they'd tied her up with.

'_Duct tape? Really?'_ Kagome thought to herself. _'These guys are total idiots.'_

Quietly, while keeping one eye on the three smoking idiots, Kagome pulled her hands as far downwards as she could reach, trying to feel for the dagger hidden against her leg under her skirt. She only started keeping it with her about a year ago, after she was ambushed by about ten different guys on her way home late one night from the dojo she'd been practicing at since high school. She didn't have it then, and Kagome was lucky she managed to escape them that one time. After that, Kagome decided to keep at least one weapon with her at all times, because she really did seem to attract the wrong kind of attention a lot more often than other girls. She didn't want to admit it, but sometimes she really did think she was a danger magnet, just like Souta always teased her about. Lucky her, Kagome always did get lucky enough to escape, or someone managed to save her in time when she got herself into trouble. That was how things always went with her.

Reaching as far as she could, Kagome felt her fingers brush against the hilt. Silently, she pulled on the dagger with the tips of her fingers, slowly luring it out of its hiding place. Once she had it fully in her grasp, Kagome twisted it around and cut through the duct tape easily. _'I'm really lucky they tied me up with duct tape. Ropes would have been harder to cut through.'_ Silently, so as not to attract their attention, she peeled the rest of the duct tape off of her hands and used the dagger to cut through the duct tape on her legs, afterwards undoing the gag on her mouth. Sitting up slowly and quietly, Kagome cut off the other, still unconscious, girl's bindings and slipped the dagger back in its small sheath hidden against the inside of her thigh, underneath her skirt. She didn't want to use it on them, no matter how scumbaggy they were and how much they might deserve the pain. A dagger was too dangerous; she just wanted to knock them out, not kill them.

She glanced back over at the three guys, feeling relieved that they hadn't noticed yet that she was awake. Looking around, Kagome noticed a few iron pipes sitting behind the guys, and she slowly edged her way over to them. Reaching out, she took one in her hand as quietly as she could be, and pulled back with it. Holding her arm up, Kagome struck out with the iron pipe, hitting the one with light brown hair in the back of the head hard enough to knock him unconscious, but she was careful not to hit hard enough to kill him. The other two guys started abruptly as he fell like a rock, but Kagome had a head start, and she swung the pipe to the right, hitting the one with glasses in the temple and knocking him out too.

Fatso stepped back away from her as she jumped out of the van, a fearful look in his eyes, but Kagome didn't give him a chance to attack her, not like last time. She'd learned her lesson, time and time again in fact, about underestimating opponents and relying on others to save her. Not anymore. Kagome was not the weak little girl she used to be at fifteen. She was stronger, and smarter. She sure as hell had been through a lot worse than getting kidnapped by thugs looking for some cash. Running at him, Kagome swung the pipe, hitting him first in the gut, then swerving the pipe upwards to hit his jaw and knock him backwards. He was down in an instant, and with that, her short battle was over.

'_It's kind of disappointing,'_ Kagome thought to herself, hopping back up into the back of the van to wake up the girl. _'They were so weak, I didn't even have to try. Not really, anyway. It's just not like it used to be, but I guess I should be happy about that. Better for me, at any rate.'_

Throwing the pipe to the side, Kagome reached out and shook the girl awake. A moment later, her eyes fluttered open, and she sat up, looking at Kagome. Kagome pulled the already cut duct tape off of her arms and legs, undoing her gag afterwards, and she sat back as the girl rubbed her wrists where the duct tape had been.

"Are you okay?" Kagome asked her, and the girl nodded. "Good. Ah, help me tie up those losers so they don't come after us again."

Looking around, Kagome found the roll of duct tape they'd used on her, and she picked it up on her way out the back of the van. The girl followed her, and together they tied up all three of the losers and put them in the back of the van where the two girls had been previously. For good measure, Kagome had them gagged, just like they'd gagged her and the other girl. She was still a bit bitter about letting herself get caught like that. They deserved whatever punishment they got.

"Forgive me for asking, but who are you?" the girl asked as Kagome shut the door on the back of the van.

"Oh, I'm Kagome Higurashi!" Kagome grinned pleasantly, holding out her hand. "What's your name?"

"Rio," she said after a moment, taking Kagome's hand. "Rio Kamichika. Where did you come from? Why did you save me?"

Smiling, Kagome gestured for Rio to follow her. "I saw you get kidnapped and I got myself kidnapped, too, by mistake while I was trying to help you. I wouldn't have been able to take it if I'd just let them drive off with you when there was something I could do about it."

"I'm sorry," Rio said, apologizing as she followed Kagome deeper into the parking garage they were in. "Where are we going?"

"Don't be sorry," Kagome told her, smiling. "I wanted to help, and in the end, neither one of us really got hurt. As for where we're going, I just wanted to take us out of sight of the van. Those guys were obviously waiting for someone, and I don't want to be sitting right there when that someone gets here. But, I don't want to leave just yet because I want to know who they were waiting on, and I'm going to try and find out why they kidnapped you. You can leave, soon, if you want, but I want to talk to you a bit first. I have a few questions for you."

Rio looked surprised, but she nodded anyway and sat down beside Kagome on the ground. "I saw you get kidnapped because I followed you," Kagome said, watching as Rio's eyes widened and she gasped. "I saw you walking with that man, following him to the van, and something just seemed wrong about it. I got suspicious, and I followed the both of you. What I want to know is, why? Why were you going with him in the first place? I know you weren't planning to get kidnapped, but you obviously had a reason to follow him there, in the first place."

"Well, I," Rio started, biting her lip in an unsure way as she glanced over at Kagome. "I was going with him… to die!"

Kagome's eyes widened at Rio's words. "Just start over, will you? Tell me everything, from the beginning, but make it quick. I don't know how much time we have left."

Rio nodded after a moment, trusting Kagome. "Alright."

So, the girl told Kagome everything, from finding the pictures and discovering her father's affair, to hiding them for six months before she couldn't take it anymore, and making it possible for her mother to see them. Hating the way everything seemed so fake and nothing changing after that, wanting to disappear, and talking to Nakura and agreeing on meeting with him to disappear and die together.

Once she'd heard everything, Kagome put her arm around Rio's shoulders comfortingly. "That's a stupid reason for wanting to die. Look, everyone's got secrets. That's okay. So, there's a part of your parents' lives you don't know about. Who cares? I'm willing to bet you've got secrets your parents don't know about, things you keep hidden even from your best friend. If you were that worried about the pictures and your dad's affair, you should have just talked to your parents about it. They probably just thought you knew nothing of it and didn't want to worry you about it. So they worked it out together, and kept it from you in order to protect you from having to deal with their problems."

Rio was silent for a moment as she processed what Kagome told her. Finally, she spoke up. "Now that I think back on it, it really does seem stupid. Thank you!"

Kagome smiled. "No problem," she said.

Suddenly, Kagome heard what sounded like a horse neighing coming from the edge of the parking garage. Putting a finger to her lips to signal Rio to be quiet, Kagome crept forward to peer around the corner. What she saw was a biker, wearing all black with a black motorcycle that, surprisingly, had no headlights. The biker rode into the parking garage, heading over to the van.

"Stay here," Kagome whispered to Rio. "I'm going to find out who that is. I don't think it's whoever those guys were waiting on."

Rio nodded, staying right there around the corner as Kagome stepped forward, walking over to the person in black. "Hey, you!" Kagome said loudly, gaining the person's attention from where she had been looking at the three men tied up in the back of the van. "What are you doing over there?"

The rider looked up at Kagome, and then pulled what looked like a phone out of her sleeve. She typed something up on it, and showed it to Kagome.

_Did you do this? Are you one of the girls who was kidnapped? _

"Yeah, I escaped and tied them up, so they wouldn't try again after they woke up." Kagome told her, looking up at the female rider in black. "Why are you here and what do you want? I assume you're not whoever those losers were waiting for?"

Typing something up on her phone, the rider showed her message to Kagome. _Not at all! I was sent here to help you, and take you and the other girl to a certain place. Where is she, by the way? I don't see her._ The rider looked around her at the parking garage, as if to prove her point about not seeing Rio.

After a moment, Kagome turned around and put her fingers to her lips, blowing a whistle and waving to signal to Rio that it was safe. The other girl peeked her head around the corner where she'd been hiding, and upon seeing that it was safe, came out to meet them.

"What's going on?" she asked, stopping beside Kagome. "What are we doing now?"

"This rider here says she was sent to help us, so obviously the person who sent her knew about us getting kidnapped." Kagome told Rio, and the younger girl's eyes widened. "She wants us both to go with her, but I disagree." Kagome had learned a lot in the feudal era about paying attention to things and not writing it off as coincidence when something happened, or believing everyone innocent until proven guilty. She knew better than most that, sometimes, it was guilty until proven innocent. This time, all the signs were there, and they all pointed toward this Nakura person Rio told her about.

The rider shoved her phone out at Kagome, showing her what she'd written. _What do you mean? So, you're not coming with me?_

"Huh?" Rio tilted her head to the side slightly in confusion.

"Something's just off about this whole situation," Kagome explained. "It's too organized. I don't like it, and I don't want you going, Rio. Do you think you can find your way home from here?"

"Yes, I think so," Rio said, nodding.

"Good," Kagome said, placing her hands on her hips. "But there's one more thing I need before you go. I want you to switch clothes with me."

"What? Why?" Rio asked, blinking in a confused manner.

_I'll be waiting right over there whenever you're ready. I can't force you both to go, so whatever you decide on is just fine with me._ The rider showed Kagome and Rio the message, and after a nod of confirmation, she went over to stand by her bike.

"Just a precaution," she responded, reopening the back of the van to dig around for that taser the man with glasses had earlier. "Here, take this, too. Just in case you get attacked on your way home." Kagome handed the taser over to Rio once she'd finally found it inside the man's pocket.

"Thank you," Rio said, taking it and putting it away in her bag. "But what about you?"

"I can handle myself," Kagome said, smiling. "Now, about our clothes?"

"Sure," Rio said, following Kagome over to the side of the van, where they could not be seen from the street outside the parking garage.

The girls took a moment to switch clothing, but Kagome let Rio keep her bag and the necklace she'd been wearing. All Kagome needed was her clothes, boots, and the hair ties she'd used in her hair. Kagome was a little disappointed, though, that Rio's clothes were as tight on her as they were, but really, she should have seen it coming, what with the age difference and all. After they were both properly situated in each other's clothing, the girls walked around the van and went over to where the rider was waiting.

"Alright, I'm ready," Kagome told the rider, and the woman handed Kagome a black helmet Kagome had not noticed before. "Take care of yourself, Rio! Maybe we'll meet again someday!"

Kagome climbed onto the back of the bike, clutching onto the rider to keep steady behind her as she prepared to take off. "And, hey!" Kagome continued, smiling over at Rio. "Keep fighting, okay? Don't ever give up!"

Rio nodded, smiling and waving as Kagome and the rider took off into the night, heading towards their destination.

**Chapter End**

Let me know if you like it! I know it's not as long as the last chapter, but it's five pages worth, and it's about 2000 or so words long, so I'm okay with it. Plus, this seemed like a good stopping point for this chapter.

**R** –eaders

**E** –njoy

**V** –iewing

**I** –ndividually

**E** –very

**W** –ritten

**S** –tory

I love 'em. So REVIEW and tell me what you think of my story so far! –_^


	4. Chapter the Third

So I decided to go ahead and upload chapter 3, just let me know how you like it, okay? And don't forget to vote for your favorite pairing!

**Chapter the Third: Confrontation**

_For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul. –Judy Garland_

**Last Time:**

Kagome climbed onto the back of the bike, clutching onto the rider to keep steady behind her as she prepared to take off. "And, hey!" Kagome continued, smiling over at Rio. "Keep fighting, okay? Don't ever give up!"

Rio nodded, smiling and waving as Kagome and the rider took off into the night, heading towards their destination.

**This Time:**

The rider pulled up in front of the building soon enough, and Kagome climbed off of the odd bike, handing the helmet back to her.

_Someone is waiting for you on this building's rooftop. This is as far as my job goes._ The rider showed Kagome her message, and Kagome nodded in thanks. Before she could turn to go in, however, the rider pulled her phone back to type up something else. _Good luck with whatever happens._

Kagome read her message, and smiled at the rider. "Thanks!" Before going in, however, Kagome hesitated. Turning back around to face the rider that still hadn't left yet, Kagome opened her mouth to say something more. "I know you're not human." The rider looked shocked at what Kagome had said, and she began typing something up, but Kagome held up her hand to stop her, for just a moment longer. "But, as long as you don't do anything to harm the good humans of this city, you're okay with me."

The rider seemed both shocked and moved with what Kagome had just said to her, and she typed up something. _Thanks. You don't care that I'm not human? That I'm different? Most people would freak out if something like this happened to them._

Kagome read the message and smiled. "As you can see, I'm not just any normal girl. I've got secrets, too, just like anyone else. And, as long as you don't do anything particularly evil, I won't do anything to stop you, myself."

Without another word, Kagome turned around and went into the building, ignoring the curious way the rider was staring after her underneath the helmet she wore. She headed up towards the roof, but she stopped right before pushing open the door. Taking a deep breath, Kagome tried to calm the nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach. It was a feeling she used to get all the time in the feudal era, right before facing off against something particularly dangerous. Pushing open the door, Kagome stepped out onto the roof, shivering slightly when the chilly wind hit her form. Looking around, Kagome didn't see anyone upon the rooftop. It was empty.

'_Maybe I just can't see him from up here?'_ Kagome thought questioningly to herself, walking slowly down the stairs.

Once her feet hit the concrete of the roof, Kagome walked slowly out into the open area of the roof, her recently pig-tailed hair swaying in the wind as she looked around for another person on the rooftop.

"Miss Magenta!" she heard coming from the shadows at her left, and Kagome gasped a little, swinging around to face the voice.

He came out of the shadows, and Kagome realized why she didn't see him before, judging by all the black he was wearing. Black shoes, black pants, black shirt, black coat, and even black hair. _'No wonder I didn't see him,'_ she thought, just as he opened his mouth to speak. He closed it almost immediately afterward, though, staring at her face, and Kagome saw the recognition that flashed in his eyes. It only made her even more wary of the male standing before her.

"You're not Miss Magenta," he said, smirking as he stepped closer to her. "You're that other girl, the one who got herself kidnapped trying to save the real Miss Magenta from those three losers! I have to admit, you put up quite the entertaining fight back there."

"Bingo!" Kagome exclaimed, smirking. "And you just confirmed my suspicions!"

"Suspicions?" he asked curiously, coming to a stop directly in front of her. "Now what suspicions would that be?"

"You want me to explain?" Kagome asked him, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Alright, then. I guess I don't mind doing that, as long as you give me your real name first, of course!"

He smirked, looking down at her. "Clever girl!" Sighing, he shrugged, taking his hands out of his coat pockets. "I suppose I could tell you." He smirked again. "I am Izaya Orihara," he said, and Kagome's eyes widened as, unbidden, a gasp left her.

He noticed, but before he could say anything about it, Kagome had already started laughing. _'I don't believe it!'_ she thought to herself. _'Souta was right, the little twerp!'_

Izaya frowned, staring curiously at her. "Tell me, why are you laughing?" He smirked. "I know my name is a bit odd, but honestly, it's not that funny."

"No, it's not that," Kagome told him, calming down.

"Then what is it?" he asked. "Please, tell me."

"It's just," Kagome started, looking away from him to stare out at the city, past the edge of the roof, "my little brother was teasing me earlier about being a total danger magnet, and after everything that's happened tonight, I realize it's completely true. I didn't want to admit it, but I can't keep denying it, with everything that's happened!"

"Really now," he said, watching her with a curious look in his eyes. "A danger magnet! I had no idea!" His smirk widened, and Kagome could tell by the tone of his voice that he was being a bit sarcastic.

"Let's get back to the situation at hand, okay," Kagome said, sighing slightly in irritation as her previous laughter ceased. "I just want to get this over with and go home."

"What, are you tired of talking about your danger magnitude already?" he asked, grinning.

"Actually, yes, I am," Kagome said, sighing. "Now, after I took out the kidnappers and woke up Rio, she told me everything. That's when I first started suspecting that 'Nakura', or you, had something to do with her getting kidnapped. When that rider came to save us, I got even more suspicious. (By this point, Izaya was watching Kagome intently with a curious look on his face.) And then, the rider told us she was supposed to bring us somewhere. By then, I realized that this whole situation, everything about it was just too organized. So, I told Rio I didn't want her coming here. I switched clothes with her and I told her to go home."

"I see," Izaya said, smirking lightly.

Kagome took a deep breath and continued. "You recognized almost immediately that I wasn't her, which meant you'd seen her face. You knew what she looked like, and that's what I wanted to find out by borrowing her clothes like I did. You've been watching her, and you were also watching when the kidnapping took place, or you wouldn't have known I'd been kidnapped too. You put a lot of careful planning into this, and all I want to know is why? Why did you go to all the trouble to convince this girl you were going to commit suicide with her, and then have her kidnapped when she went to meet with you? And then, on top of that, you also orchestrated a rescue, where you planned to have her then brought here! Why?"

By the end of Kagome's mini speech, Izaya was smirking broadly, with an almost maliciously happy glint in his eyes. "You're a lot more perceptive than I thought you'd be! I had no idea you'd figure out so much so soon! Bravo!" Izaya gave a light clap in Kagome's direction, applauding her physically while his reddish eyes bore into hers.

"You haven't answered my question!" Kagome exclaimed, clenching her fists and stomping a foot in her angry irritation.

Izaya's eyes narrowed slightly, almost imperceptibly. "I'll answer your question, if you give me your name. Your real name, mind you, so don't lie!" He grinned in a falsly happy manner as Kagome's eyes widened slightly in her shock at him throwing her own demand right back at her.

After a small moment of contemplation, Kagome nodded. "Kagome Higurashi," she told him. "Now talk!"

"Patience is a virtue, Kagome-chan," Izaya said with a grin on his face as he walked past her to stand at the railing at the edge of the roof, and Kagome started slightly at the familiarity with which he used her name. "Simply put: I love humans!"

Kagome's eyes widened in shock at his words. "You say that as if you're not human!" Kagome told him, glaring almost accusingly.

"Who knows," he said, chuckling lightly as he gave her a shrug. "Maybe I'm not."

Kagome gasped lightly at his words, and almost unconsciously, she spread out her miko energy to feel his aura for any sign of demonic power. When she felt none, though, Kagome sighed audibly with relief. "No, you're human alright," she said quietly, looking over at him, and he tilted his head slightly in curiousness. "But, still. That's not a good enough reason for what you did tonight! So, elaborate. Tell me more about why you did all this. And what does loving humans have anything to do with it?"

Kagome crossed her arms in front of her chest, trying to seem a bit more intimidating as she glared at him. "What makes you so sure I'm human?" he asked her, smirking lightly as he ignored her question.

"I just know!" Kagome said, turning her head away from his to break eye contact with his smolderingly red orbs. "Now stop avoiding it and answer the question already!"

"Honestly," he said, chuckling lightly as he walked past her again, away from the bar blocking off the edge of the roof. "I just wanted to see how she'd handle herself, what she'd do given the situation."

Kagome gasped, her eyes widening as he looked back over at her face. Clenching her fists tightly, Kagome glared at Izaya intently. "You're telling me that you did all this to that girl, Rio, just so you could see her reaction to it!" While Kagome was saying this, her voice got steadily louder until she was actually yelling at Izaya.

"Yup!" Izaya responded cheerfully, which only served to fuel Kagome's anger.

"Tell me this then," Kagome stated after a moment of trying to keep herself calm. "If, even after speaking with you, Rio-san still wanted to kill herself, what would you have done?"

Izaya stared at Kagome for a moment before responding. "Nothing," he said, seriously. "Honestly, if someone wants to go out like that, then who am I to tell them they can't?"

Kagome wanted to hate him for what he'd just told her, and although she was still angry with him, she found she could not hate him. The problem was, she understood his reasoning. If a person was that set on suicide, stopping them once wouldn't prevent them from trying again and again until they succeeded.

"You're despicable!" Kagome told him, but he said nothing and Kagome knew he knew she understood. "It's late, so I'm leaving!" Turning, Kagome stalked away from him, towards the door.

"What, running away now, are we?" he called after her, and Kagome stopped, clenching her fists.

Turning around angrily, Kagome stalked back over to stand in front of Izaya. "I'm not running away!" she yelled at him, gritting her teeth together in her anger as he watched the play of emotions on her face with amusement shining in his eyes. "I'm no coward! But, you're not worth the effort," she said, jabbing a finger into his chest as her words got quieter, her voice calmer. "And I'll be damned if I waste any more of my time with an asshole like you!"

With that, Kagome turned around, ignoring Izaya's shocked, frowning face as she walked out the door. She was still angry, pissed even, and she didn't really understand how she'd managed to get so angry so fast. He was far from being a good person, Kagome knew as she paced angrily down the stairs, but she'd always managed to keep her temper in check in situations like this. Even when she was facing off against demons that killed anyone and everyone who got in their way, she wasn't this angry.

Stepping outside, finally on the ground, Kagome took a deep breath of the cool night air, at least, the part of it without Izaya's scent all over it. Kagome's sense of smell was far from demonic, but even she could smell the light tint of expensive cologne that hovered casually in the air closest to him, and the small undertone of something more, the fluff of his natural scent hovering, hidden just below the surface.

Walking down the street, Kagome shook all thoughts of Izaya from her head as she searched for signs of a familiar street. She spent the next thirty minutes wandering the streets hopelessly, looking this way and that for signs of the streets she'd been on earlier and of her apartment building.

"Ugh!" Kagome gripped her head in her hands in frustration. "Where is it? I don't recognize a thing!"

"What's a pretty, defenseless girl like you doing out here all by yourself so late at night?"

Kagome gasped, and her head swiveled in the direction the voice had come from, and her eyes widened as she was quickly surrounded by a group of about five or six guys, some with sticks and pipes and one with a knife. Clenching her hands into fists, Kagome took on a martial arts stance she'd learned not from the dojo, but from Sango when she was trying to help Kagome get stronger so she could defend herself and not have to rely on them so much to protect her. That training didn't really work out all that well, but the stance she sported was one of the few things she remembered. It allowed her to both attack and defend, and Kagome was grateful that she still remembered it.

"What the hell do you scumbags want?" Kagome yelled, her eyes darting around as she tried to find a possible escape route. It would be difficult if she had to fight all six of these guys by herself, and if it came to that, she was all but positive she wouldn't walk away without some kind of injury to show for it.

"Ooh, looks like this kitty's a little feisty!" said one of the men, taking a step forward.

"Stay the fuck away from me!" Kagome yelled at him, throwing her fist forward to punch him straight in the center of his face.

His face erupted in blood, centered around his broken nose, and he fell to the ground with a cry of pain. Kagome took her chance, seeing the opening in the circle made by the fallen man, and she ran right through. She didn't stop once she was clear of the circle, or turn around to see if they were following, because she didn't have to. They were loud enough that Kagome could hear their every movement as they chased after her, yelling profanities.

Most of them were falling behind by now, and Kagome knew she could easily outrun them. Kagome didn't like backing out of a fight, but she knew it would be better to run for the moment. She was way outnumbered, not to mention exhausted from everything, and with her escape, the noises of chase disappeared. After a moment more, Kagome finally stopped to catch her breath, her hands on her knees.

'_I really am exhausted if that tired me out!'_ Kagome thought to herself, her heartbeat slowing slowly back down to normal.

Her breathing was still a bit rough, but Kagome wanted to get home soon, so she didn't waste any more time resting. She would save that for her bed in her apartment. Looking up, Kagome started walking again as she began her efforts anew in trying to find her apartment. She stopped again merely sixty seconds later.

"I don't believe it!" Kagome exclaimed happily as she stared up at the building before her. "That's my apartment building, right there!"

Walking forward, Kagome made her way to the side of the building, where the fire escape was, a slight skip in her step. A few minutes and a change of clothes later saw Kagome curled up in her bed, happily content to forget the day's events, if only for a little while, as she let the warmth of her blanket lull her into sleep.

**Chapter End**

Chapter three is done! Let me know how you like it so far! So, I'm going to let you guys vote on your favorite pairing here, for now, but later, I'll post up a poll on my profile. When it does show up, just start voting there. I'll count that as the official vote, and this one will probably end up as a Pairing Popularity Poll, or something.

0 Izaya/Kagome/Shizuo

0 Izaya/ Kagome

1 Kagome/ Shizuo

There's already votes starting to come in, but this is where it's at, so far. Oh, and I'll let you vote on a pairing for Souta, too. Him with any of the Durarara female characters around his age (16). I'll post up the poll for him as I get votes in. ^^_^^


	5. Chapter the Fourth

Alright, on one note, I am so happy you guys all love this as much as you do! When I first started writing this story, it didn't turn out at all like I had planned for it, but I still dearly love this story. On another note, I don't think I absolutely need a beta, but it wouldn't hurt to get one to help out in any way possible. So if anyone out there would like to beta this, please feel free to ask! If I acquired a beta, though, I would like one that would not mind helping with my outlining stage, and who could get it back to me quickly enough. I think outlining my stories would be extremely beneficial, and having a good beta to look over the outline and make suggestions for the story would also help. Oh, I almost forgot, on the outline part, it would be helpful if said beta were willing to help me 'flesh out' the outline. Just ask if you are interested, folks! ^^_^^

Also, this is a little unrelated to this story, but if someone would like to beta my other story, Wait, based on the specifications above, as well, then I would like that very much! A beta isn't necessary for me, but it wouldn't hurt at all to have one, so I'm willing to give it a try! On the subject of my other stories, if anyone were willing to co-author an older story that I am willing to continue (if it is popular enough), then just ask. We would need to work out an outline for that story, as well, but I just don't have the heart to delete all of my old stories. I would much rather see them completed. If anyone wants one of my older stories, just ask, too. I'm willing to give a few away. Now, enough said, On with the story!

**Chapter the Fourth:** The Day After

_I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love. –Daphne Rae_

**Last Time:**

Walking forward, Kagome made her way to the side of the building, where the fire escape was, a slight skip in her step. A few minutes and a change of clothes later saw Kagome curled up in her bed, happily content to forget the day's events, if only for a little while, as she let the warmth of her blanket lull her into sleep.

**This Time:**

Sitting at the kitchen table in her pajamas, Kagome took another sip of her hot chocolate. She didn't normally drink hot cocoa this early, or when the weather wasn't freezing enough that it was needed, but Kagome needed a sugar rush to get her started for the day and she hated coffee. So, hot chocolate would have to do. Blowing on her drink to cool it down, Kagome looked around at the kitchen. The tiles had a black and white, diamond patterned design adorning them, and the walls were cream colored. It was simple, sparsely decorated, save for the dark mahogany kitchen table, with a circular glass tabletop. The fridge was pushed up against the wall opposite where Kagome was sitting, right beside the black countertops and the stainless steel sink. Then, on the other side of the sink, there sat a dishwasher, and the doorway was just a few feet away from there. Black and white, with a hint of brown. That was her kitchen, her eerily empty, still foodless kitchen, and suddenly, Kagome was cold, and goosebumps were travelling up her arms.

The cup was still steaming lightly, warm against her hands, and as Kagome finished off her drink in one gulp, the warm liquid sizzling against her tongue and warming her body just a bit more, she realized she would have to wake up Souta soon. So, Kagome sighed and stood from her seat, the one she'd been in for the last fifteen minutes, trying to remember what she'd been dreaming about the night before. It had been a good one, too, but then, somewhere in the middle, that Izaya bastard popped up and ruined the whole thing. And, now, she couldn't even remember what she'd been dreaming about in the first place.

Kagome sighed again, placing her cup in the sink to wash later. Leaving the empty kitchen behind, Kagome travelled into the brown and beige colored living area. It was decorated in warmer tones and colors, and Kagome did not feel so empty and alone in there as with the kitchen. And even though she wanted to plop down onto the dark brown pillow-and-suede styled couch, Kagome was on a mission at the moment to wake up her younger brother.

Stepping past the couch and up to her brother's bedroom door, Kagome didn't bother knocking. Instead, she pushed the door open and walked right on into Souta's room. "Wake up, Squirt!" Kagome yelled out loudly, giving his shoulder a push with her hands. "If I can't sleep in, then you can't either! Get up!"

He groaned from underneath the covers, burrowing deeper to avoid getting up. "Go away," he mumbled quietly, the sound muffled by his blanket.

"We've got a lot to do today, Souta, now get up!" Kagome exclaimed, pulling the blanket right off of the bed, Souta and all.

"Fine, fine, I'm up!" he said, sitting up to rub his tired eyes free of sleep as he yawned.

"Go ahead and get ready, okay?" Kagome said, releasing the blanket to walk back over to the door. "And don't forget to make your bed!" Grinning, Kagome left the room, choosing to return to her own and get ready herself.

Walking over to her closet, Kagome began digging through it in her search for today's outfit. She'd stopped wearing dresses and skirts so much, though, because of all the creeps around Ikebukuro. She still liked wearing skirts, but in a place like Ikebukuro, pants were usually safer. Kagome knew this, even though she'd only been in Ikebukuro for a grand total of about three to four days. The day before was the only day she'd really been out in the city, and not even hours later, she'd managed to get herself into trouble. So, for that day, Kagome chose a pair of loose black, cargo-style pants and a red spaghetti-strap shirt with an oblique hem. The bottom of the shirt was longer on one side than the other, creating a slant. Brushing her hair quickly, Kagome exited her room and went to the living area just as Souta left his room, as well.

"Are you ready, Souta?" Kagome asked.

"Yeah, but there are some things I want to tell you before we leave," he told her, sitting down on the couch.

"What kinds of things, Squirt?" Kagome asked, sitting down beside him.

"Well, when I got home yesterday, I went online to look up some things," he said, looking over at her.

"Huh?" Kagome blinked in slight confusion. "What did you look up?"

"I got what I could find out about everything you were warned against yesterday," he said.

"So tell me," she said, watching his face, his eyes with her own. "What'd you find out?"

"I found some really interesting stuff, Sis," he said.

"Okay, so spill already!" Kagome exclaimed, getting a little impatient.

"Fine," he said, looking at her face. "But once I start talking, you gotta listen. No interrupting!"

Kagome sighed impatiently, nodding. "Okay, but please try to hurry. We do still have a lot to do today."

"Right. Well, the color gangs all have certain colors that represent them. The gang members wear that color so people will know which gang they belong to. There's this new gang, called the Dollars, but they're different from the other gangs. They don't have a color. They're transparent, or something. They attract members through their website! See, you get this email asking if you want to join, and if you reply 'yes', then someone sends you a message with the password. You don't even have to do anything! There's no system of order, no one at the top giving orders to all the Dollars members! You just say you're part of the Dollars, no strings attached! (By this point, Kagome wanted to say something in response to what Souta was telling her, but she kept quiet, as promised.) That's all I know about the dollars, though. I couldn't find out anything else. When it comes to the other gangs, though, I heard that the Yellow Scarves and the Blue Squares had this really big battle or something about a year ago. Afterwards, though, I think both groups disbanded, or something. I didn't really look too much into the gang stuff." He paused for a moment, and Kagome thought about what he told her.

"There's something odd about the Dollars, no doubt," Kagome said, placing her hand on her chin thoughtfully. "I don't want you to get involved with them if you can help it, okay Souta? Now, did you find anything else out about the other stuff?"

Souta nodded. "Yeah. That Shizuo Heiwajima guy and the other one, Izaya Orihara. I found out that they hate each other. (Kagome looked surprised here, but Souta was back to talking, so she kept quiet again.) Shizuo-san is a lot stronger than we thought he was! He can lift vending machines into the air, and pull street signs right out of the concrete, and every time he sees Izaya-san, he attacks him! (Kagome was really surprised to learn this, and somewhere in the back of her mind, Kagome wondered if Shizuo Heiwajima had extremely diluted demon blood, what with his abilities and all.) Usually, he throws whatever he can reach at Izaya-san, and they basically try to kill each other all the time! When he's not pissed off, Shizuo-san isn't a bad guy, but Izaya-san isn't the kind of person you should trust."

Kagome nodded, taking in this new information. "I can't say I blame Shizuo-san for attacking Izaya-san, what with him being such an asshole and all, but isn't trying to kill each other just a bit much?"

Souta blinked in confusion for a moment. "Wait, Sis. You know Izaya-san?"

"Yeah, I met him last night," Kagome said, looking over at Souta. "I'll have to tell you about it on our way out. So, what else? Or is that all?"

"That's all I know about Izaya-san and Shizuo-san," Souta said. "But I did look into the Black Rider. (Here, Kagome seemed to get interested in what he was saying, leaning forward slightly as she, once again, quietly listened.) That thing's not human, Sis! (Kagome didn't look surprised at that new knowledge, just at Souta knowing about it before she'd even had a chance to tell him herself.) The stories online and around town say that it rides silently on the streets without any sounds of an engine, and it has no headlights or license plate! Sometimes, when the bike passes by on the street, it even sounds like a horse! That's not even the best part, either! (At this point, Souta's face grew more frightened, and less excited than he had looked before.) According to what everyone says, the Black Rider has no head! It's just a body that moves and lives with no head on its shoulders! It's real creepy, Sis!"

Souta began shaking lightly as he thought about the 'Headless' Rider, and Kagome allowed her shocked look to dissolve into a smile. "I met the Rider last night, too, you know," Kagome said, and Souta stopped shivering to stare at her in shock.

"Really, Kagome!" he asked, leaning forward slightly.

Kagome nodded. "Mmhm. I'll have to tell you about it on the way, so if that's everything, then we really need to get going." Standing up, Kagome gave Souta a pointed, questioning look.

After a brief moment, he seemed to get what she was asking. "Oh, yeah, that's all," he said sheepishly, standing up from his spot on the couch. "By the time I found out all that, it was starting to get late, so I didn't really push for anything else."

"That's okay," Kagome said with her hand on Souta's back, pushing him lightly toward the door. "Let's get going and I'll tell you all about last night!"

Souta's face lit up with excitement as he slipped on his shoes. "Awesome!" he exclaimed, stepping out of their apartment behind Kagome. "So, what happened?"

After locking the apartment door with her key, Kagome tucked the tiny object safely into her pocket and strode the short distance over to the elevator. Pushing the button to call the elevator, Kagome turned to face Souta, who had followed her every step in his eagerness to discover the previous night's events.

"Well, let's see," Kagome started, walking forward (with Souta right behind her) as the doors opened with a 'ding'. "I guess you could say it all started when I got myself kidnapped."

* * *

><p>Later that night, Kagome was leaning back against the headboard of her bed with her laptop sitting in her lap. They'd done the shopping they needed to do, including the rest of what Souta needed for school, as well as some groceries for the two of them. Kagome had forgotten to get a copy of the apartment key made while they were out, however. At that moment, Souta was in his room, probably playing video games, which left Kagome with a little free time to do whatever herself. She chose to spend that free time in the online chatroom she was a part of. (After all, it was already dark, even though the lights of the city kept it bright enough out on the streets.)<p>

_**Miko**__ has joined the chat_

**Miko: **Hello!

**Kanra: **Good Evening!

**Miko:** Oh, Kanra-san, it's just you tonight?

**Kanra:** Are you disappointed, Miko-chan?

**Kanra: **I'm hurt that you don't want to talk to me!

**Miko: **No, nothing like that Kanra-san! I was just curious about why no one else is on, at the moment, is all!

**Kanra: **That's okay, then!

**Kanra: **So, you just moved to Ikebukuro, right Miko-chan?

**Miko:** Yeah, and I still have to find a job! I can't live on my savings for too long, or I'll end up severely draining the account.

**Kanra:** Well, good luck with that! So, anything exciting happen, yet?

At this point, Kagome hesitated, wondering just what she should tell Kanra. She only knew Kanra online, so it probably wouldn't be a good idea to tell the girl about _everything_ that had happened.

**Miko: **Well, I ran into that Shizuo Heiwajima guy everyone's been telling me about.

**Kanra: **Really! Wow, so what happened?

**Miko: **Ah, nothing much. He seemed a bit irritated, but other than that, I think it was okay.

**Kanra: **So, he didn't blow up at you, or anything?

**Miko: **No, why would he do that? All I did was run into him.

**Kanra: **He's got an awful temper, Miko-chan! I heard he puts people in the hospital nearly every day!

Kagome was about to type up a reply to Kanra, who didn't seem to like Shizuo all that much, when her cell phone rang from its spot beside the bed. Picking it up, Kagome glanced at the caller id, sending her response into the chat room just as she answered the call.

**Miko: **Really? He didn't seem all that bad when I saw him.

"Kagome here," Kagome greeted. "Oh, hi Eri!"

**Miko: **Hey, I got a phone call from an old friend. So, I have to go, but we'll talk more next time, okay!

Without waiting to see what Kanra's reply was, not out of rudeness, Kagome logged out of the chatroom. Eri was already talking, and Kagome wasn't sure yet if the call would be quick, or extremely long and drawn out. It was hard to tell with her, and that was exactly why Kagome had left the chatroom when she did.

"You wanna meet up?" Kagome asked, a curious tone in her voice. "All three of you?"

"_Yeah,"_ Eri said from the other end of the line. _"We want to visit you in Ikebukuro, and see how you're doing so far."_

"Really?" Kagome asked, almost incredulously. "You're not up to anything, are you?" A suspicious look crossed into Kagome's eyes as she spoke, and she was sure Eri heard the almost accusing quality that took over her voice at that moment.

"_No, no!_ _Nothing like that!" _Eri denied vehemently. _"You know, the four of us haven't gotten together much at all since we graduated high school. I was just thinking that, maybe, we could all kinda catch up on everything, hang out like we used to. What do you say? Can we come visit?"_

Eri's voice still sounded a bit nervous, but Kagome could also hear the honesty in her words. Kagome bit her lip, thinking. She knew that Eri was still hiding something from her, but honestly, how could Kagome say no to the other girl's plea of wanting to see an old friend after several years of almost nothing? What she had said was true. The four of them had grown apart since high school ended, and they were rarely all together anymore. Unlike Kagome, the other three girls, as well as Hojo, had all gone to college. Kagome had thought about college once, but after everything that had happened, she couldn't see herself as a college girl. So, she wrote out that option as a negative and decided to try to make a life here, in Ikebukuro.

"_Uh, Kagome, you there?"_ Eri asked questioningly, snapping Kagome out of her thoughts as she realized she still hadn't replied to the other girl's question.

"Yeah, I'm still here," Kagome responded. "And, sure, you guys can all come visit! It'd be great to get together again!"

"_Awesome!"_ Eri exclaimed happily. _"We're all free two days from now, so that's the only day we can work out to all come over together! So, where do you want to meet up?"_

* * *

><p>"Interesting," murmured one Izaya Orihara, propping his chin in his hand as his reddish eyes read the words on the computer screen.<p>

A devilishly curious smirk was set on his face, and his other hand was busy using the mouse to click here and there on the web pages he was currently viewing. A few clicks of the mouse and a web page later brought Izaya to stare at an entirely different list of information.

"Ah, dear Kagome-chan," he whispered aloud to himself as his eyes trailed over the page. An excitedly interested look entered his eyes as an almost happy grin spread on his previously smirking lips, and he sat up straighter in his seat to do some more digging. "Just what exactly are you hiding, little Miko-chan?"

**End Chapter**

Here's the voting toll, so far! One thing about the voting, don't vote more than once! And certainly not for every chapter! I will only count your vote once regardless of how many times you place it, and it only makes it harder to get the legit votes all counted if there are multiple duplicates all over the place!

8 Izaya/Kagome/Shizuo

0 Izaya/ Kagome

5 Kagome/ Shizuo

Another thing I noticed, though I'm not angry about this, is that there are currently no votes coming in for Izaya/ Kagome. I thought that there would be more popularity for this pairing than there is, but maybe I'm just a bit biased because that's my favorite of the IY/DRRR crossover pairings. I was hoping to receive more feedback on that one than I did. Either way, whichever pairing wins will be the final pairing for this story, despite the fact that it may not be my favorite choice. Although, I do admit that the pairing of Kagome and Shizuo does seem like it would really work out. I guess I just thought that an Izaya/ Kagome pairing would be more fun. Ah, oh well. ^^_^^ There might be some Izaya/ Kagome interaction in this yet, if the triangle-thing stays in the lead and wins!

Oh, and despite who wins, I plan on making something similar to an alternate ending for the losing couple. I hope so, anyway. Oh, and the poll is on my profile now, if you want to go there and vote. I'm still not quite sure which one is going to be the final voting process, but I'll figure it out in the next few chapters, and then I'll let you know.

Another thing, I was thinking that maybe Souta could be paired with Rio. You know, the girl from the beginning, when Kagome was kidnapped. What do you guys think about that?


	6. Author's Note

Okay, so there's quite a bit I want to let you guys know about. First of all, I may not be updating this for a bit. I'm going to focus more on my other story, _Wait_, because it's been posted on here a lot longer than this one. This story, however, is far ahead of that one already, and I want to get the two caught up, at the very least. So, as of now, my main priority story-wise is _Wait_. I'll update this one when I can, but that is my priority because it's been on here longer. As such, it should and deserves to be the main story I'll be working on. On another note, you guys may have noticed that I changed my pen name to Mayonaka Yoreki. I like that pen name better than the one I have been using all this time. You guys can let me know how you like it if you want, but that won't affect my decision to keep this new name.

Okay, so I've changed my mind, again. There will still be Kagome/ Shizuo interaction, but it's going to be Shizuo/ Kagome/ Izaya throughout the story, and then later, i'll have her make a choice, or something. I'll post alternate scenes/ endings for both pairings, but I think there will be so much more drama and depth to the story if both are included. I'm making a decision on _Wait,_ but I'll try to get this updated really soon, if I can.


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